Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Jenson Button who has piloted his Brawn to victory in the first two races of the season will find out if his car is legal when world motorsport's governing body, the FIA, makes a final ruling on the diffuser row on Tuesday.The Formula 1 championship leader's Brawn Grand Prix team, Toyota and Williams use a split-level diffuser.The FIA rejected a protest by rival teams who argue the design does not conform to the new 2009 regulations.The International Court of Appeal will rule on the issue which may see Brawn, Toyota and Williams lose their points.

An independent panel will hear arguments from both sides in Paris on Tuesday with a verdict expected the following day.

WHAT IS A DIFFUSER?

It is the rear part of the floor of the car between the rear wheels and under the rear wingIt is crucial to the aerodynamics, and small changes can have a big impact on downforce - and therefore grip and speed

The row broke out when Ferrari, Renault and Red Bull protested against the legality of the split-level diffusers on the eve of the season-opening Grand Prix in Australia, but race stewards in Melbourne rejected their claims.BMW Sauber then a similar protest rejected at the Malaysian Grand Prix while McLaren have recently added their weight to the official protest.The protesting teams say the split-level design contravenes a rule that states the diffuser - an aerodynamic body part which aids performance - has an upper edge that runs in a horizontal straight line.They also believe the design is negating the main aim of this season's new rule changes to make overtaking easier.The split-level diffusers are able to generate more downforce at the rear of the car, resulting in a clear performance advantage of around 0.5 seconds per lap.If the protestors win their appeal the FIA has two options.It could allow the results of the first two races to stand, with the three teams concerned being forced to alter their cars from Sunday's Chinese GP onwards, or they could remove any points won by those teams in Australia and Malaysia.British driver Button - who insists his car is "100% legal" - has won both and his team lead the constructors' championship with 25 points, ahead of Toyota on 16.5 points.The other eight teams have only 17 points between them and Ferrari, the reigning constructors' champions, are yet to get off the mark.Brawn GP team boss Ross Brawn is optimistic the Court of Appeal will agree with the race stewards and sanction the split-level diffuser design."I would just be surprised if the appeal court can make judgements on technicalities - it's quite a complex technical matter," he told BBC Sport"You can't be 100% confident but I hope common sense prevails on their side."If the judges rule the diffusers are legal, then the seven teams who are running without the split-level diffusers are expected to try and incorporate the design into their cars as soon as possible.Setting about such a radical redesign with the season underway will not be easy.Many of the teams running will regular diffusers argue the cost of making the changes is too great, especially during a climate of cost-cutting within the sport in the face of the global economic crisis."I've heard several of them complaining about the cost," said Brawn."But there are lots of things teams copy from each other and the cost doesn't get debated."I think some teams will be able to do it very quickly, but for other teams it will be more difficult because of their suspension configuration or other elements of the car," added Brawn.Whichever way the judges rule in Paris, the outcome of the hearing is likely to have a significant effect on the season."The championship could be more or less decided," warned Renault's double world champion Fernando Alonso."If the diffusers are legal, then the Brawns are going to be nearly unreachable for any other team."